Meanwhile, Mr. Trump has formally withdrawn the U.S. from the Trans-Pacific "Partnership" negotiations; I did wonder how he was going to flip-flop on this matter, but I'm glad he didn't. Still, as with the pipeline troubles above, the Executive Order isn't the end of it -- Mr. Trump may well negotiate (or renegotiate) trade deals that are even worse than the multitudinous "free" trade deals that have plagued our nation over the years. So the Sierra Club helps you tell your Congressfolk to negotiate trade deals that put people above polluters. The road to hell is paved with the stories of multinational corporations who spew filth into the people's air and water -- and then sue their governments for even having clean air and clean water laws in the first place, expecting a tribute (or a bailout, take your pick) for the trouble they caused! Mr. Trump's inclinations don't give me hope, but then he doesn't get all the say around here.

Alec Mento's *Penny Rants* books help you relive the horrors of the last 14 years of American politics, but with an improbable optimism and (per Kirkus Reviews) an "acerbic flair" and "a talent for distilling complex ideas into quickly digestible parts." And you can only get these books at Blunt Instruments; click the photo above (or type blunteye.com into your browser) to get them!